Common Names: licorice root, licorice, liquorice, sweet root, gan cao, gan zao, Chinese licorice

Latin Names: Glycyrrhiza glabra, Glycyrrhiza uralensis, Glycyrrhiza inflata

Background

Licorice root is cultivated throughout Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. It is used as a flavoring in candy, other foods, beverages, and tobacco products.

Licorice root has a long history of use, going back to ancient Assyrian, Egyptian, Chinese, and Indian cultures. It was used traditionally for treating a variety of conditions, including lung, liver, circulatory, and kidney diseases.

Today, licorice root is promoted as a dietary supplement for conditions such as digestive problems, menopausal symptoms, cough, and bacterial and viral infections. Licorice gargles or lozenges have been used to try to prevent or reduce the sore throat that sometimes occurs after surgery. Licorice is also an ingredient in some products for topical use (application to the skin).

Perennial (zones 7-10)

14-20 days

Well-drained

Part shade to full sun

12-36" apart

Licorice has long been appreciated as a flavoring in confections, liqueurs and other creations. It's use as a flavorful tea goes back even farther. Licorice tea does not taste exactly like the black licorice sticks you might remember from childhood. That's because most licorice candy is usually flavored with anise.

Soil

Well-drained soil of average fertility.

Position

Full sun.

Frost tolerant

None. Morning glory is a warm-season annual.

Feeding

Mix a light application of a balanced organic fertilizer into the soil prior to planting. In midsummer, drench plants with a liquid fertilizer to prolong bloom time.

Companions

Melon. Vigorous morning glory vines will twine up any type of support and grow into lush, heavy-blooming plants. They are at their best on a sturdy fence.

Spacing

Single Plants: 7" (20cm) each way (minimum)

Rows: 7" (20cm) with 7" (20cm) row gap (minimum)

Sow and Plant

Sow morning glory seeds indoors to get a head start, or you can plant the seeds where you want the plants to grow at about the time of your last spring frost.

Our Garden Planning Tool can produce a personalized calendar of when to sow, plant and harvest for your area.

Notes

Morning glory vines are fast climbers that will run up fences, poles, or taller plants such as sunflowers. Morning glory flowers close up during the afternoon hours.

Harvesting

Gather up the old vines after they are damaged by frost and compost them. Morning glories are related to tomatoes, sweet potatoes and other members of the nightshade family.

Troubleshooting

Many older strains of morning glory quickly become invasive weeds in warm summer climates. ‘Heavenly Blue’ and ‘Flying Saucers’ are safe choices because they set few seeds compared to many other varieties.

'Yellow Sweet Spanish Utah' is from that early type, producing large, 3"–6" globe-shaped bulbs with amazingly mild, sweet flavor.

They are eaten fresh or as an ingredient in salads, soups, sauces, stews, curries or processed in pickles and chutneys.

Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) is an herb from the mint family. The leaves, which have a mild lemon aroma, are used to make medicine and flavor foods. Lemon balm contains chemicals that seem to have a sedative and calming effect. It might also reduce the growth of some viruses and bacteria.

What Does Lemon Balm Taste Like? This aromatic member of the mint family has a bright, citrusy taste that brings together the acidity of lemon with subtle hints of mint. Both the stems and fresh leaves of lemon balm have a subtly sweet flavor and can be used in food preparation and medicine.

Tall Utah celery produces long, thick, dark green stalks that are crisp, sweet, and flavorful, reaching heights of up to 50-75 cm (20-30 inches). This reliable, disease-resistant, and slow-to-bolt heirloom variety is known for its strong flavor, tight, well-formed hearts, and ability to hold its color and form for late-season harvest. No blanching is needed, making it a popular choice for both home gardens.

Utah Celery, specifically the "Tall Utah" variety, originated in Utah in the 1940s, developed by Chinese and Japanese gardeners who crossbred existing varieties to tolerate the region's alkali soils. This sturdy, tall, and sweet celery became a popular cash crop, featured on the White House Thanksgiving table from the 1920s to the 1940s due to its excellent quality and tolerance for Utah's conditions.

This is a late German variety with a good resistant to cold. This variety is very vigorous and produces round, firm and crisp head with green, tender, red-edged leaves.
To be sown from March to September and Harvest from June to November.

HEAD SHAPE Tapered

LEAF SHAPE Elongated

EXTERIOR COLOR Scarlet Red

LEAF CHARACTERISTICS Glossy, Slightly Frilly

Bruna Di Germania: Plant is longed with a large core and has a tapered top. Sow plant at the beginning of spring and at the end of summer. Leaf tips are reddish brown. White seeds

Thyme produces attractive bushy plants with tiny grey-green leaves. Not only used to flavor most meat, fish, and vegetable dishes, this versatile herb can also be used as a plant for rock gardens and edging.Thyme is extremely aromatic and has a pleasant, pungent, clover flavor. 

PLANTING THYME:

Most gardeners will not grow thyme from seeds as the germination can be slow and uneven.

It's best to purchase the plant or use some cuttings from another thyme plant.

Plant the cuttings or seeds indoors 6-10 weeks before the last spring frost to get a head start.

2-3 weeks before the last spring frost, plant the seeds/cuttings in well drained soil about 9 inches apart.

Thyme plants should grow about 6-12 inches in height.

You can plant thyme alongside tomatoes and cabbage.

CARING FOR THYME PLANTS:

Water regularly and trim the plants regularly.

Prune the thyme plants in the spring and summer to contain growth.

To protect the plants during the winter, lightly mulch around the soil.

HARVESTING THYME:

You can harvest the sprigs and leaves in the summertime.

To dry the sprigs, hang them upside down in a dry, cool place such as a cellar.

So now that you know how to grow thyme, it's time to roll up your sleeves and get to planting!

The Golden Nugget cherry tomato is a productive, determinate (bush) variety known for its early, abundant yields of small, golden-yellow, ping pong ball-sized fruits with a sweet, balanced flavor. Developed for cool climates, it's ideal for containers and small gardens due to its compact size and high productivity when picked regularly. It matures in approximately 56 days and has a rich, sweet taste that can be similar to a sweet yellow pear. 

Appearance: Slender green leaves atop distinctive red stems that can grow up to 12 inches tall on plants reaching 24 inches, with cooler weather deepening the color.

Flavor: Mild, sweet, and less pungent than bulb onions, with a crisp texture.

Type: A bunching onion (Allium fistulosum), often grown like a spring onion or scallion.

Origin: An Asian heirloom, popular with home gardeners. 

Planting: Best planted in late summer/fall for rich red color, but can be grown most of the year.

Soil: Prefers fertile, well-drained soil.

Blanching: Mounding soil around the stems creates longer white parts; leaving it exposed deepens the red.

Harvest: Can be harvested young as tender scallions or allowed to mature, cutting and regrowing for multiple harvests. 

Adds color and mild onion flavor to dishes.

Ideal for Asian cuisine (stir-fries, sukiyaki), salads, soups, and as a garnish.